Collapsible costumer



Feb. 1, 1944. M. LANGE COLLAPSIBLE COSTUMER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct.16, 1940 5 m A M v/ m Mm R O k 3 j 3 %M w w j 1. Z

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ATTORNEY Feb. 1, 1944. M. LANGE COLLAPSIBLE COSTUMER Filed Oct. 16, 19402 Sheets-Sheet 2 /NVENTOfi.-' 4 0091s LANGE ATTORNEY ziiwmlwill 1-11m. Bi lx w t m mama Feb. 1, 1944 UNITED STATES PATENT orricsCOIMPSiSItQfiZS'I-UMER Morris Lange, Cleveland Heights, Ohio ApplicationOctober 18, 1940, Serial N0. 881.,3 5 Claims. (Cl. 312-173) Thisinvention relates to costumers or garment racks and particularly toportable, collapsible costumers suitable for use on special occasionswhere extraordinary crowds are likely to gather.

As conducive to a clearer understanding of this invention, it may bewell to point out that on occasions such as funerals in private homes,where the facilities for accommodating garments is limited, theundertaker usually supplies a folding rack which attempts to serve thepurpose. The costumers of the prior art have been cumbersome, awkward tohandle, and generally cupied valuable space.

It is, therefore, the primary object of this invention to provide acollapsible costumer which folds compactly into a carrying case, whichcase also serves as the base of the rack.

Another object of this invention is to provide a device of thischaracter with a novel folding hat rack.

A further object is to equip the supporting standards of such deviceswith folding Joints that automatically snap into place and which areeasy to operate.

These and other objects and features of the invention will becomeapparent from a study of the following description and claims togetherwith the accompanying drawings in which like parts are designated bylike reference characters and wherein:

Figure l is a front elevation partly in section of the costumerconstituting the invention with parts of the carrying case'broken awayto show the construction and assembly, and showing certain parts inalternate positions illustrating the method of collapsing the device.

Figure 2 is a front view of the closed case with parts broken away toshow assembly;

Figure 3 is an end view of the device in opened position taken along thelines 1-8 of the Figure 4;

Figure 4 is an elevation partly in section of the costumer illustratedin Figure 1;

Figure 5 is a view of a hat hook and support taken along the lines 5-!of the Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a top view of an umbrella retainer taken along the linesi-ioi' the Figure l; and

Figure 7 is a'front view of a supporting member joint.

The collapsible costumer constituting this invention consists primarilyof three main parts. There is first the horizontal case or containermembensecond, the support members, and third, the rack member. Each ofthese elements will be described in detail and in the order iustsetforth.

The base member II is simply a compact carryingcasehaving aiiatbottomli,side walls and perpendicular ends I! thereon. The top of the case,indicated by the character it, is provided with a carrying handle it,and is secured to the case member II when in the folded or closedposition by the trunk catches or fasteners M. This lid or closure memberis also serves as a shelf when the device is in its open or extendedposition.

In order to prevent the device from tipping when it is open andretaining the garments, telescoping leg supports li are mounted on thebottom ll. These telescoping supports It or extendable leg members itconsist of channel members II which are rigidly attached to the bottomII and extend laterally thereof. An inner arm or tube portion I8,slidable within the channel or outer tube ll, extends outwardly of thesides of the case, The outer ends of the arms II are providedwith rubberpads or feet I9. Mounted on the inside of the arm is is a simple springcatch 20 which engages one of the holes II in the bottom of the channelor tube ll. When the arm II is fully inside of the tube II, the springcatch 2! engages the hole 2|, and when the arm II is extended fully, thecatch 20 similarly engages the hole ilo. There are two support elementsadjacent to each end of the bottom ll. One arm on each end extendsoutwardly to the left, and one arm II on each end extends outwardly tothe right, so that when the four arms are extended fully, the'base oithe costumer stands on an area almost twice the area of the case bottomll.

The inside ofthe case It is partitioned oi! into compartments which aresuitable for containing a number of coat hangers it, and two umbrellaholders 50. These will be described in detail hereinafter. In thedrawings, the longitudinally extending partition 23, together with theside wall of the case, forms a compartment for retaining the umbrellaholders 5!, and similarly, the partition 24, together with itsneighboring wall, forms a compartment for retaining a supply of coathangers ll. 7 a

The frame or collapsible support member for the device consist ofvertical, tubular uprights II and 31, hingedly connected together at thejoints 0 which when in the extended condition are perpendicular tothe'bottom member II. The lower tubular supports II are a little shorterthan thelengthofthebase ll. Theseareattachedto the base |l so that whenfolded inward or toward each other, the supports 33 fit into the caseand are parallel to the base when in a folded conditlon. In Figure 1 ofthe drawings, there is shown in broken lines the manner of folding thesupports into the carrying case; and Figure 2 shows the verticalsupports completely folded therein. A bracket member 32, which is simplya length of U shaped metal commonly referred to as a channel iron, isattached to the base on the inside of the case about midway between thetwo long side walls and quite close to the end walls I2. .I'hesebrackets 32' extend longitudinally of the case. Immediately above thebrackets 32 and attached to the end walls'l2, are vertical brackets 33which have substantially the same shape and size as the previouslydescribed horizontal brackets 32. Two spaced triangular plates 3| arefastened to and connected with the side walls of the channelled brackets32 and 33. The vertical supports 33 are pivotally connected by means ofthe horizontal pin 34 to the parallel triangular plates 3| as shown inthe Figures 3 and 4. Mounted on the pin 34 and engaging the support 33is a spring 35, the tension of which urges the supports 33 to an uprightor vertical position. This construction and spring 35 is clearly shownin Figures 3 and 4. The brackets 32 and 33 are also referred to hereinas stabilizing means for the reason that when the supports 33 are foldedinto the case, they fit into the open or channel portion of the brackets32 and are held rigid and firm in the case. Similarly, when the supports33 are fully opened, they'are engaged by the vertical brackets 33 andthey are then held in rigid engagement with the end walls l2.

The upper support members 31 are just a little shorter than the lowersupport members 33, so that they too might conveniently fit into theclosed case.

The two support members 33 and 31 have a unique connection means. Thisjoint 43 can, when the device is opened, retain the members 33 and 31 inrigid vertical alignment. For this purpose there is provided a fixedcollar 4|, which is firmly attached to the lower support 33. This collarhas an inside diameter sufficient to receive the upper support 31 and isopen on its outer side so as to permit free pivotal movement of theupper support 31. The upper support 31 has a hinge member 42 attachedthereto, which hinge member engages the fixedcollar 4| by means of thehinge pin 43.

Slightly above the hinge 42 there is mounted a slidable collar 44 on theupper support member 31. This slidable collar 44 is provided with atongue or clip 43, which engages the fixed collar 4| when the twosupports 33 and'31 are in perfect alignment. This slidable collar 44 isheld downward so that the tongue 48 engages the fixed collar 4| by aspring 45, which is inside the tubular support 31. The lower end of thespring 45 is attached to the tab or ear 43 on the support 31,

and is attached to the slidable collar 44 by means of the pin 41. Thipin 41 is rigidly attached to the collar 44 and passes through a curvedslot or hole 43 in the upper support member 31. The tension of thespring 45 urges the collar downward, By simply rotating the slidablecollar 44 in either direction, the pin 41 rides the curved slot 43so'that' the tongue 43 is raised sufficiently to disengage the upperedge of the fixed collar 4|. .When the slidable collar 44 is so rotated,the supports 33 and 31 may be easily folded.

The lid member or cover l3, heretofore referred to 'as a top horizontalportion, indicated by the character 33 in the drawings, serves as ashelf for hats, packages, etc. Extending downwardly from the shelfportion 33 and Just a little inside the ends thereof, are two Y shapedbrackets 3|. The top end of the vertical support 31 is hingedlyconnected to the lower end of the bracket 3| so that the support member31 may fold inward when the device is collapsed. A simple hinge pin 32,which engages the top end of the support 31 and the lower end of thebracket 3|, is provided for this purpose. Slightly above the top of thesupports 31 and attached to the two brackets 3|, there is a bar memberand particularly a tubular rod 33 which extends longitudinally andhorizontally under the helf 33. This tubular rod 33 is included toprovide a convenient means for I holding the coat or garment hangers 55.In order to provide extra room for so supporting the garment hangers 55,extension or telescoping members 34 are inside of the tube 33. Theseextension members 34 may be withdrawn by grasping the handle or knob 35on the outer surface of the brackets 3|. The Figure 1 of the drawingsshows the extension bars 34 drawn out to provide extra hanging space;and the Figure 4 shows the bars 34 in the collapsed position whichpermits it to be received by the case l3.

The hat hangers 33 of which there are six projecting outwardly on eachside of the device, are attached to a length of angle iron 31. The endsof these lengths of iron 31 are pivoted to the ends |2a of the lidmember l3 as indicated by the pivot pins 33 in the drawings. Thispermits the hat hangers 33 to be extended or placed in a substantiallyhorizontal position when the costumer is opened for use, or they may beturned downward so as to fit into the carrying.

case |3 when the device is collapsed. The Figure 3 of the drawings showshowthe hat hangers 33 may be either opened or closed. In order to retainthe hat'hangers 33 and the angle'iron 31 in a firm or rigid openposition, there is provided a catch member 33. This is simply a smalllever 33 pivoted to the bracket 13 and mounted on the lid member |3, sothat the notch 12 in the lever '33 engages an edge of the angle iron 31.The small spring 1| urges the catch 33 into engagement therewith.

Two umbrella supports are provided for the device. These are simplywater-proof bags 53 which fit on and hang from the semi-circular frame5|. The frame 5| may be made of wire bent as shown in the Figure 6 witha small hook 53 at its middle, which fits into the holes 52 of thesupport members 33 and are held in place thereby.

To set up the costumer, the user first draws the arms it out of thechanneled tubes I1 as far as they will go in order to extend the base.'

The snaps or looks H are unfastened and the lid l3 lifted vertically asfar as it will go. This lifting operation automatically straightens thevertical supports 33-31, and when perfectly straight, the joints 43 willsnap into place holding the supports rigid. The two horizontal rods 34are withdrawn from the tube 33 as far as they will go; and then thehooks 33 are swun outward and upward until firmly held in place by thespring members 33 and finally, if necessary, the bags 53 are hung on thevertical supports 33 as shown in the Figure 1. When closing the device,the aforesaid operations are simply reversed.

It will now be clear that there is provided by 2,840,540 this inventiona collapsible costumer which accoznplishes the objects of the invention.While the invention has been disclosed in its preferred form it is to beunderstood that the embodiment of the invention as described andillustrated herein is not to be considered in a limited sense as thereare many other forms or modifications of the invention which are alsoconsidered to be within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim: v

1. A collapsible costumer, comprising in combination, a container havinga bottom and side walls, collapsible support members hingedly mounted inthe container andbeing perpendicular to the said bottom when in anextended position and parallel thereto when in a folded condition, a barmember mounted on the support members receivable by the container whenthe support members are in the folded condition, and a lid member havinga plurality of hooks thereon mounted on the bar member and closing thecontainer when the support members are collapsed and in the foldedcondition. 2. A collapsible costumer of the type defined in claim No. 1,and further characterized by the said hooks being foldable andreceivable'by the container when the support members are in the foldedcondition and extendable outwardly of the lid member when the saidsupport members are in the extended position.

3. A collapsible costumer, comprising in combination, a container havinga bottom and side walls, collapsible support members hingedly mounted inthe container and being perpendicular to the said bottom when in anextended positionand parallel thereto when in a folded condition, and alid member mounted onthe support members andclosing the container whenthe support members are collapsed and in the folded condition the saidlid member having a plurality of foldable hat hooks thereon extendingoutwardly when the costumer is extended and being receivable by thecontainer when the costumer is folded.

4. A collapsible costumer of the type defined in claim No. 3, andfurther characterized by the lid' member having a horizontal bardependins therebelow.

5. A collapsible costumer, comprising in combination, a container havinga bottom portion and side walls, collapsible support members hingedlymounted in the container and being perpendicular to the-said bottom whenin an extended position and parallel thereto when in a a foldedcondition, a lid member mounted on the support members and closing thecontainer when the support members are collapsed and in the foldedcondition, the said lid member having a plurality of foldable' hat hooksthereon extending outwardly when the costumer is extended and beingreceivable by the container when the costumer is folded and extendableleg members mounted on the said bottom portion retaining the aforesaidmembers upright when in the extended position.

MORRIS LANGE.

